Mission: Kazekage Rescue! The Real World Dangers!
by Anoka Kon
Summary: Gaara is trapped again. Not in the Akatsuki's possession though, but inside of the real world. Having fallen into a portal, Gaara must befriend an innocent girl named Maya and hope to find a way home before the Akatsuki find out he's gone.
1. Prologue

It was the cawing of a crow that woke him up from his sleep. Opening his green eyes, he saw the crows above him, the vultures of death that wanted to eat him alive. He swallowed, his throat parched and his head spinning altogether.

His fingertips touched soft leaves, a sort of dew upon his skin and making him wonder where he was. Sitting up and shaking his head, he put a hand through his red hair and tried to remember what happened. The last thing he remembered was walking through the forest… and then nothing. His memory was blank, and for some reason, he felt lighter than normal.

Looking about him, he saw nothing but trees and deserted land. The canopy above him poured with sun and created shadows that danced according to wherever the wind took them. He took another look around, hearing the crows die out as they fluttered away, realizing that their meal had lived. He licked his lips, feeling the dirt below him.

_Where… Where am I?_ Getting up slowly, he balanced himself upon his feet and began to walk towards… wherever it was his feet took him. He had no idea where he was, as this clearly wasn't the forest he started out walking in. His body swayed from side to side a bit, clearly fatigued and not used to the nothingness on his back.

_Wait. _

He stopped in his tracks, feeling his back. His hands touched nothing but air, and it was then that he became fearful. His gourd was gone. The gourd that the Shukaku had used to defend him against enemy attacks, and held the sand that he controlled, already infused with his chakra. He swallowed again, not knowing exactly how he could have lost that one hundred pound gourd. It was always upon his back… it was always with him. It was one of those things that he held onto like a precious item. Now he was without it. At least he could still control sand.

Looking down at himself, he began to fear if he had lost anything else in whatever had happened to him previously. He still had on his dark trousers on, which meant that however he lost his gourd wasn't the same thing that tossed him around for a bit. The laces were still there, a few inches below his waist and knees, and he still had on his crimson coat. The hemlines were a bit ragged, but he dusted them off carefully and they turned out fine. His grey holster was still upon his chest, and the other belts he had around his waist were fine, but the belts on his back used to carry his gourd were empty.

This was strange. He was somewhere he had never been before, and he lost his gourd. But nothing else on him was moved. He pondered for a second before his head began to spin again, forcing him to move into a different location. It was strange enough that he had lost his gourd, but now he was traveling to God knows where.

He traveled along in the forest, following where the birds were going. If there was any civilization of any kind, they would know which way to head. It had taken him a while, but he managed to step upon concrete, which meant that someone was living nearby. The sun poured down on him, making him thirstier, but he paid it no mind as a strange noise was coming from his left.

He only had a moment to glance before something came speeding at him, a loud noise piercing his ears. He held ups his hands in defense, not sure what was going to happen next. Luckily, his sand was there to protect him. The sand from the surrounding area had formed together and protected him from whatever it was that was coming straight at him. Looking up from his shielded arms, he saw the sand die down and two people staring at him through the window of a car.

He stared back at them, confused as to where exactly he was. What would a car be doing all the way out here? What village was this? He couldn't have come upon any village; he hadn't passed a gate or anything.

The car was stalled, the engine still running, but the driver looking like he had seen a ghost. They had never seen sand justu before?

"Sorry. Could you tell-" he only let out a few words before they screamed and the tires screeched, sending them away into the horizon. He let out a sigh before beginning to walk again, seeing the strange things around him.

There were houses to his left and right, but the forest where he came from was sealed off for some reason. The concrete led up a hill and then into a sort of complex of houses. This only confused him more, seeing as there were no people in sight, and the only people he had seen got scared by his sand.

He was famished, and thirsty. He held a hand to his stomach and continued walking though. He knew he had to find somebody. It was beginning to get late, he saw that. The sun that was once over his head was now at his eye level, and the sky was turning all shades of red and orange. His eyes gazed around at the area.

Houses, trees, cars, streets, this had to be a place with people, but finding them would be the problem. He trudged on, with what little strength he had left in him. His sandals scraped against the pavement as he walked; already beginning to pant and wish he was back home in the Sand Village.

When he reached the top of the hill, all he saw were more houses and trees. Clearly there was no end to them, and the night was settling in, the cold getting to him and making him shiver. He had no idea where to go, and he wasn't sure if people were going to listen if he asked for help. Fireflies began to come out, a sign that the night was already coming alive. This meant that creatures would come out as well, and he didn't want to be caught in any danger.

Out of pure desperation and anguish, he began to walk towards one of the houses, stepping onto the grass and only taking a few steps before collapsing upon the soft Earth. He shivered and laid there, his eyes dimming. He was running out of chakra fast. It was then that he heard footsteps come closer to him, and warmth spreading over him. Someone had found him, and someone was going to help him.


	2. The Real World

"What the hell do you mean he's lost?" she screamed, slamming her hand down upon the desk. The other ninja gazed at her and sighed in exasperation.

"I understand how concerned you are, but getting all riled up isn't going to help us find him." He said slowly, trying to calm his sister down. She had flown into a fit of rage this morning, and it was only when he had heard the news that he understood why. She turned to him, rage in her eyes and her mouth upturned in a snarl.

"The Kazekage is gone! Don't you understand? We're open for attack now!" her brother, who was still gazing at her, replied rather calmly. "Temari, we'll find him. We've got every ninja in the village working on it. He couldn't have gone too far."

Temari growled, her sandals clacking on the floor as she began to pace for what seemed the millionth time that day. She put a hand to her head and began to think, began to rattle her brains. Where could her brother have gone?

Kankuro on the other hand, decided to have the logical look on this matter. He knew that his brother was gone, but that didn't mean he was going to fly into a rage and make it seem like the entire world was ending. Temari was right to act as if it was though, with the Kazekage gone, they were open for any sort of attack coming from other villages, and they weren't prepared to fend for themselves. He wasn't sure what to do though.

"What do we do?" Kankuro asked, fiddling a bit with his wooden puppets that lay upon his back. Temari bit her lip, her golden hair bobbing back and forth as she shifted through the papers upon the desk, putting them back in order since she had nearly sent them everywhere.

"I don't know… without him here… I'm not sure what the village will think… they love him and you know that, but we can't afford to lose anyone! This is a desperate time…" her brother thought for a moment before placing his wooden puppets down and speaking softly. "I think it's time we tell Konoha."

* * *

><p>A soft melody, a sort of hum. His fingers twitched, touching a rather soft and warm surface. His entire body was covered by this warmth, while the sun poured in gently upon him, causing his eyes to open a bit.<p>

"Good morning…" a deep and yet gentle voice greeted him, making his ears alert. Where was he? The last thing he remembered before not remembering was walking along the grass, towards a house, and then collapsing.

He sat up slowly, propping his back up against a pillow and finally taking a look as to where he was, and who was talking to him. She blushed a bit, smiling at him. "You finally woke up. I was worried there for a second, but you're okay."

He gazed at the girl, her bangs falling over her eyes and hiding the brown. Her glasses slid down her nose a bit, her finger coming up to push them back. A shy smile was upon her face, and she spoke a bit more, shuffling her arms in her black sweater.

"You have to be thirsty or something… it seemed like you hadn't eaten or drank in a while. I'll get you some water." She stood up, her tan skin glistening in the light and reflecting her well toned body. Green eyes followed her as she walked out of the room, finally taking a chance to take a good look around.

This was obviously her room, as she looked to be about nineteen or eighteen, give or take. There was a purple lamp directly above his head which was movable, as well as various dolls all around him. That was what made the bed so soft.

There was a desk to his right and the wall was directly to his left, while a poster of something called "Wolf's Rain" hung upon this wall. Next to the desk was another sort of desk, except this had two layers to it. The top layer had some sort of machine on it, while the next layer had a purple rectangular object lying on top of it. Below that were various things such as a camera, books, and other things.

In front of him was a dresser, filled with normal things a girl would like. Jewelry, make up, and a mirror to stand in front of. Of course, the mirror was plastered to the wall to get a full view. When he took a last look, he noticed that there was a three stacked bookcase next to the window which was next to the bed. There was also another window above the desk, which explained where the sunlight was coming in from.

"Looking around?" her voice caught him off guard. Sitting back down on her black swivel chair, she came over to him and handed him a glass of water, watching as he took it gently and sipped at it quietly. He gazed back at her and then spoke.

"Who are you?" she blinked before answering. "My name's Maya, pleased to meet you." She said rather brightly, holding out a hand. He took the hand, noting the rings and bracelets on both.

"And I know who you are; though it puzzles me how you got here…" he stared back at her in confusion. "What do you mean?" he asked, tilting his head. Maya sighed, and then proceeded to reply to him. "You're Gaara right? Gaara of the Sand?"

The Kazekage nodded his head, but still unsure of where she had learned of his name. Maya decided a different approach to this. "Gaara… I don't know how… but… you're in the real world now…"

Gaara stared back at her, still not understanding what she was talking about. The girl bit her lip, and then started again. "There's a show… on television… that's called Naruto… and you're a character in that show."

"There's a show named after Naruto Uzumaki?" he asked, wonder in his eyes and confusion in his voice. Maya nearly face palmed herself. "Oh boy…" standing up and picking up the rectangular object from her desk, she went back to him, sitting down and showing him something upon a screen.

The top of the screen read 'Naruto Wikipedia', while the rest of the page showed him in various positions. The words on the screen read all about him, his age, his birthday, what he did… everything he could think of was on there. This was a little unnerving.

First he was thrust into this strange place, and now a little screen that tells everything about you? What kind of place was this?

"Gaara… you're an anime character."

"A what?"

"An anime character."

"What's an anime character?"

"A character that's inside of a Japanese cartoon."

"What's a Japanese cartoon?"

"It's called an anime."

"What's an anime?"

"It's like a cartoon… like Bugs Bunny or something."

"What's Bugs Bunny?"

Maya was going to have a difficult time explaining to him what exactly he had come into. Gaara was inside of the real world, where shinobi and ninjas were only things on paper, not actual terms or powers or any of that sort of thing.

"Maybe… I should start off slowly…" she got up again, closing the rectangular thing and walking towards the door. "What do you want to eat? It looks like you're famished."

A growl from Gaara's stomach agreed with her statement and he looked up, tilting his head but still speaking. "I don't want to eat here… in your bed. I'd rather be in the kitchen…"

Maya shrugged, holding out a hand to him. "I think you're still a little shaky on your feet, so I'll help you until you can handle yourself, okay?" Gaara sat up slowly, taking her hand and getting up upon his feet, noticing that she had taken off his sandals. The floor was wooden, and felt rather good against his skin. He didn't mind this at all.

As he stood up, he realized that she was smaller than him by at least a few inches, for she only stood up to his neck. Leaning against her a bit for support, he stood upright, his head spinning slightly and causing him to jerk.

"You okay?" Maya asked, holding the poor Gaara up with all her strength. Gaara gazed back at her and began to walk towards the door, his eyesight not really all there due to fatigue. Maya eventually led him down the hall and into the kitchen, where, she poured him a glass of orange juice and began to take out some things from the fridge.

"I'm going to give you some meat… just so that your head stops spinning and you get some sort of control over yourself." She said. Gaara took a seat on one of the stools in the kitchen and sipped at the juice, the sweet nectar running down his throat and making him feel better already.

He gazed at her backside as she was making the meal, wondering if she knew anything about how he had gotten here in the first place. Gaara wasn't apt to ask questions, but it seemed this was the only time where he would have to ask some to get somewhere.

"All done!" Maya turned back to him, a bowl filled with delicious smelling chicken in one hand and a platter filled with rice and veggies in the other. Gaara could feel his mouth watering, and Maya had only just placed down his utensils when he began to eat like mad, engulfing the food and stopping only to breathe and drink the juice provided to him.

The girl took a seat next to him, watching him eat like he had never eaten in his life. She smiled at him, quietly observing the Gaara that she had only dreamed of meeting in her life. Gazing at him now, it was strange to see him as an actual third dimensional person instead of just lines on paper. She would have to find out how he got here in the first place.


	3. Mission Deployment: Team Seven

He growled, nearly hitting the ground in front of him in pure anger. How could the Kazekage have just vanished into thin air? How could that have happened? Didn't he have security? Didn't the entire village love him? He saved them… he saved them all numerous times… and yet they couldn't find him now!

"Naruto!" he looked up, his blue eyes tracing the Hokage's face as he stepped back a little. He had let his emotions get the best of him. "S-Sorry…" he murmured, putting a hand on his head. He had been summoned to Lady Tsunade's office for a new mission, but he had no idea that this would be the mission assignment.

"It seems as if Gaara has disappeared… we need all of our forces out and looking for him." Tsunade folded her hands and thought for a moment, sighing. "The Sand Village seems to think that the Akatsuki are behind this. But the thing is… we don't have enough clues to follow through with that assumption. Our best guess is to go back to the place that Gaara was seen last."

"Where was Gaara last sighted?" Sakura butted in. She had come as well when the mission was assigned to Team Seven. She was just as worried about Gaara as Naruto was. Tsunade gazed at her steadily, the pink pig squealing in her assistant's arms quietly. The situation was uneasy.

"Gaara was last seen heading in the direction of the Leaf Village… it seems as if he wanted to pay a visit to you Naruto." Naruto's head shot up when his name was mentioned, but said nothing. He wasn't going to be the blame for this.

"Regardless, Gaara was said to have gone missing after he went into the forest… He never returned to the village. The problem with this is the fact that there wasn't anybody in the forest along with Gaara at the time. All missions and deployment acts were done for that time of day… there wasn't any reason for him to disappear…"

"But there wasn't anybody who saw him after he went into the forest? He didn't have an escort?" Naruto asked. He wanted to know why it was that the Kazekage wasn't with an escort. He would be an easy target for any passerby ninja.

"He didn't have an escort because he was coming on hidden terms. The only reason why I know of his walking here is because Temari leaked a little information." Tsunade replied coolly. "And if you think you're going out there looking for him then you're out of your mind! I'm assigning this mission as an investigation mission only… the Sand Village wants to send the rescue squad."

"This is bull crap!" Naruto shouted, banging down upon Tsunade's desk. She glared at him; she hated when people did things to her desk. "How're we supposed to save Gaara if all we have is an informational mission?" he cried, waving his hands back and forth. "Gaara could be with the Akatsuki for all we know! Or what's worse, he could be dead right now!"

"Naruto." A calm voice spoke directly to him, forcing him to turn around. A pair of black eyes set upon him, and the head tilted, watching. "We should do as Tsunade says… I think it's best if we use this 'informational' mission for our better uses."

"What do you mean Sai?" Sakura asked, turning to him. The ANBU black op turned to his comrade, speaking slowly. "I think this mission can be more of use to us than Naruto interprets."

Naruto silenced, and went back to his place beside Sakura in Tsunade's office. He swallowed, thinking about Sai's words. Maybe Gaara was alright. Maybe Gaara could fend for himself for a while… but then the events of the first kidnapping raced through his mind. Gaara had died, and only with Lady Chiyo's help did he manage to make it out alive. He was without Shukaku now… he was a little less powerful than he was before. The Akatsuki had gotten him once, and if they had gotten him again…

Naruto grit his teeth.

They wouldn't get Gaara. They wouldn't get him again…

_Not if Naruto Uzumaki has anything to say about it! _


	4. Sand Burial

"I… think I understand…" he was still a little confused, but it was slowly coming together. Maya had proved to be more understanding in his misunderstanding than he had expected. She was patient, and rather shy when talking. It was good.

They sat together in her dining room, Gaara sipping at some water while Maya explained to him what exactly the 'real' world was. He raised his eyes to her, tilting his head a little. Maya smiled back at him tiredly, thinking of a way to quiz him about what she had just told him.

"Alright Gaara… where are you?"

"In… the 'real' world."

"Good. Where did you come from?"

"A place called the 'Naruto World' created by Masashi Kishimoto back in the year 2000… I am one of the main characters of the series and is seen as one of the more popular males in the series…"

"Good! According to people here, does this world exist?"

"No…"

"But you to, it's your life. No matter what anyone says Gaara, you are real. You're here, don't ever forget that."

Gaara nodded his head, trying to piece it all together. Maya decided to make things a little simpler for him. "Okay… how about this." She leaned in towards him. "Instead of saying that you're fictional, why don't we say that you're from a different universe? That way, you'll understand better."

This, he could make sense out of. It was the first thing that actually clicked with his brain. "I'm from a different universe… that makes more sense than anything I've heard today." Maya laughed a little bit, blushing at him. "Well… it certainly makes more sense than trying to explain that you don't actually exist here but somewhere else."

"How do I get back?" he asked, taking a sip of his water. Maya twitched her nose, unsure of how to reply. "I don't know… I can't help you there. We're going to have to kind of search for a way to get you back… you don't remember how you got here first right?"

He shook his head, trying to file through his memories to uncover when and where he had transported himself to this universe. Gaara's green eyes gazed outside, wondering whether or not anybody missed him at home. The birds were flying above a high tree that Maya had in her backyard, and it was then that Maya suggested something.

"Why don't we go to the mall? I don't think it'll be okay for you to be wandering around in those clothes… whether they are yours or not." Gaara looked down at his clothes, examining the fabric and licking his lips. "Maybe…"

Maya stood up from her chair, pushing it in and grabbing her car keys from the drawer in the kitchen. "I think I help you find something… just as long as it's on sale and it's your size, then it'll be fine." Gaara stood up as well, pushing the chair in and following her.

"What's a mall?"

* * *

><p>Driving there proved to be a little bit of a hassle for Gaara. They didn't have modern cars in the Naruto world, so when he saw the vehicle he was a little taken aback. He wasn't sure something like that could run efficiently, seeing as some of the cars from their world were rather primitive and 1960ish.<p>

Maya got inside without any problem, but saw Gaara hesitate before he entered into the car, staring at the seat as if it were going to rear up and bite him on the hand. Maya smiled at him, motioning him inside. The man put a hand upon the lever and pulled open the door, sitting inside and sighing. The door closed and Maya turned to him, gazing at him silently.

"Gaara… what's wrong?"

Gaara paused before replying to her. "I'm… I'm not used to traveling this way… is it safe?" he asked, eyeing the seatbelt. The girl giggled, pulling closer to him and dragging the seatbelt over him and into the socket. She patted the seatbelt and went back to her driver's seat, shifting the car into reverse. "Don't worry; it's perfectly fine as long as you have that on."

She saw that Gaara was examining the seatbelt, tugging at it and fiddling around with the strap. "Just keep that on and you won't go flying through the window."

"What?" before he could ask anything else, Maya pulled her car out of the driveway, shifting it into drive as soon as they were facing the road. "Let's go!"

* * *

><p>The last thing he heard was the sound of Maya's voice declaring their take off into the world and towards the mall. When he opened his eyes the car was still, parked in a space next to a large building. Gaara was visibly shaking.<p>

"You okay?" she asked, unbuckling her seatbelt. He gazed back at her, sweat beading down his forehead. "Y-Yes…" he replied, unbuckling himself hastily and practically leaping out of the car. Maya watched him for a second before following him, closing the door behind her and locking her car. Gaara was glad to be on solid ground again, ground that wouldn't move when it wanted to or when Maya pressed something called the 'gas pedal'. It was a relief.

"Ready?" she asked, coming closer to Gaara. The green eyes went back to her as he regained his composure. He sighed and stood up straight, closing his eyes and then waiting for her. "Let's move."

* * *

><p>Once inside, Gaara was awestruck at how many things there were. The air conditioning blasted at him, causing him to flinch a bit, and then when he recovered from the initial shock, he quickly followed Maya through the sections of clothes. It was unbelievable! There were shelves and shelves of jewelry, clothing, kitchen items, and even more things once they moved far enough away. His sandals clacked on the tiled floor as he followed her, his eyes seeming never to get bored with what was around him. He never had anything like this in the village.<p>

"C'mon Gaara… I don't think that you're really the Macys type. Let's go to Pac Sun or something… maybe Zumiez?" he had no idea what she was talking about, but if it would get him into some open space he would eagerly follow.

Keeping close to her he trailed behind, looking up when they exited out of the first store and into the main portion of the mall. It was very open in terms of how high the ceiling was from the ground, and Gaara could see straight through to the sky. It was simply amazing to him.

To his left were some hair stores, and to his right were some stores that sold glasses. People were everywhere as well, talking, chatting, and glancing at him. As a ninja, normally he dressed in this attire merely to stand by his status, but seeing as he was in a different dimension now, he would have to comply with whatever Maya thought made him blend in the best.

Entering into the store, he bumped into a few articles of clothing, causing them to fall down. Bending down, he picked them up, gazing at them before putting them back. There were a few pieces that he liked, but he put them back, unsure of what exactly he wanted.

"Gaara, feel free to look around, pick some things that you like and then let me see them on you." He briefly gazed at Maya before picking out some things that he saw before. The store seemed to be blasting with rock music, setting the atmosphere to a more than sports feel than anything.

"Need any help?" turning to the voice, he saw a man standing next to him, smiling at him kindly and offering him a hand. "Do you need any help finding something?"

Gaara hesitated before Maya spoke to him. "Yeah, you can help us!" the young teenager worker smiled and held his hands behind his head, adjusting his backwards cap. "Whelp, what can I do for you?"

It started off with just a pair of cargo pants, and then it turned into winter wear, summer wear, and even looking for skateboards. What was skateboarding?

Gaara simply went along with it, although he gave hints and suggestions as to what he liked. The store worker was really helpful, constantly critiquing him and making him feel like he had picked the right clothes to blend in to this new world that he had fallen into.

It took a while, but he finally made up his mind. Luckily, Maya had enough money to pay for quite a few outfits (she had shown the clerk a little cleavage and with that she got away with anything) and had gotten a significant discount. As chance may have had, Gaara was much too fascinated with the clothing he had just received to notice anything much besides that.

"Well, what do you think?" Maya asked. They were walking together and going to the food court, as it was getting late in the day and Maya intended to feed the hungry Gaara. They had spent most of their time in stores searching for the right clothes for him. He was surprisingly easy to shop with.

Gaara peered into the bag one more time, and then spoke quietly. "Yes... I think these will fit me well. When will I be able to try them on?"

"As soon as we get home, I think you'll look really good in them!" she replied, giggling. Gaara stopped at one of the food stores and looked about, trying to see what they had. Maya stepped up behind him, smiling at him. "You know, it's all on me right? Go ahead."

Sitting down and eating interesting food was the thing that made Gaara realize how truly wonderful this world was. Of course there were passerby's who looked at him strangely because of his clothes, but Gaara paid no attention to that. He was eating pizza, which was something like dough with cheese and tomatoes on it, all combined together. It tasted like nothing he had ever tasted before.

Maya stared at the man who was engulfing it like there was no tomorrow. "Take it easy Gaara; you're going to get a stomach ache!" Gaara looked up from his pizza, which slid out of his hand and back onto his plate. Licking his lips and wiping his mouth with a napkin, he smiled faintly.

"I guess… I got a little overexcited."

"Hey! Nice outfit!" his ears perked when he heard the voice coming from behind him. A boy in a rather peculiar outfit greeted him, sitting down with them. Maya glared at him suspiciously. "May I help you?"

"Yeah, you here for Comic-Con?"

"Oh God… is it really in town? Here?"

"Yeah! He's dressed up for it! Who're you?" Maya's eye twitched when he said this. "I'm me." the boy held up his hands in defense. "Whoa, whoa! Take it easy! I just thought you were gonna dress up as something, but I guess not!"

She sighed, seeing Gaara's confused look. "Comic-Con is when a bunch of people get together and they dress up as their favorite character from an anime or a popular show."

"Yeah, and you're dressed up like Gaara from Naruto right? You got it down pack man! Even the scar on your forehead looks real!"

Gaara shrunk back a little from his statement, stuck between being amused and somewhat embarrassed. The boy smiled at him, patting him on the shoulder. "You should enter in one of the contests or something, you'd definitely win." He got up, waving at them both. "See ya later!"

Maya watched him go and went back to Gaara, who was staring down at the floor. "There are people who dress like me?"

"They try to… it's more like a fan thing. They do it because they think you're the best thing to happen to this planet ever since sliced bread."

Gaara nodded faintly, a curious look on his face. "Things… are so different here… than from home."

Maya sensed the sadness in his voice, the sadness that was buried beneath the facade that he kept. Inside, he was screaming to go home, and more importantly, to find his gourd. That was only thing that was missing.

"Gaara… I-"

"Everybody get down!"

The voice made the entire area go quiet for a moment, until a shot rang out and shattered a window above them. A few people screamed as they hid underneath the eating tables and covered their heads.

Gaara turned around, and out of the corner of his eye, he could spot two masked men, both holding pistols. One of the guns was aimed towards the sky; obviously he was the one who shot through the ceiling.

"Nobody move!" one of the gun men said, his accomplice pointing his gun around the room making sure everyone followed orders. Maya was already beneath the table and tugging at Gaara's pant leg to come down with her. "Gaara! Gaara get down here!"

Instead of listening to her, he narrowed his eyes, standing up and folding his arms. The man who had shouted turned to him, yelling at him.

"I said get down!"

Gaara made no attempt at a reply, but merely glared at him, his green eyes filling with anger and irritation every passing second. The man clicked his gun, ready to fire if need be.

"Get down!"

"I suggest you put that down before you get hurt." Gaara replied calmly. The man took a step back, not believing what he had just heard. "You challenging me boy?" he shouted, coming closer to Gaara.

The Kazekage made no movement, but Maya could hear something stirring beneath her. Little black bits of rock were beginning to grate down, dulling into sand. It was the power of the shinobi.

"Put the gun down." Gaara repeated, eyeing the man silently. "And don't shoot." The man snarled at him, shaking his head. "You think you make the rules around here punk? Hell no!"

A shot rang out and Maya flinched, not sure what was going to happen. Silence filled the room as everyone quieted again, and when Maya looked up from beneath her table, she saw the most amazing thing.

Sand covered Gaara's body, the bullet stuck in between the filaments of sand. Gaara was completely unmoved, the sand now destroying the bullet and beginning to whirl around him like it did in the show. Maya's eyes were wide with fascination.

_This is unreal… unreal! And it's so cool! Oh my God where's my camera phone? _

"I told you not to test me… and yet you ignored my warning…" raising his hands up and pulling back, the sand sped towards the men, flicking the guns out of their hands and making them shout in surprise. They never expected to be attacked by sand. Both of them raised their hands above their heads, crying out loud.

"What the fuck are you?"

"Your worst nightmare." With another flick of his hand, the sand wrapped around the bodies of the men, dragging them to the floor and pinning them there, solidifying into rock. The men screamed and cried, but it was no use. The rock melded in with the tiles and forced them to quiet. Their guns were out of reach and they were now stuck to the floor permanatnely… or until the police arrived.

Turning back to his friend, Gaara knelt down and spoke gently to Maya, finding her underneath the table, shaking with both excitement and fear. He reached out a hand to her, placing it upon her shoulder. "You're not hurt, are you?"

Maya shook her head slowly, staring at him. "That was… amazing Gaara…" her eyes twinkled when she gazed at him, Gaara seeming to blush and look away for a second before the crowd began to rumble.

"Who was he?"

"What did he do?"

"Is he a monster?"

"What happened?"

They were just as confused as the two masked men were, and as the people began to crowd around the trapped men, Gaara decided to take his leave.

"I think we'd better go."

Maya nodded, but couldn't move an inch. She was still in a state of pure shock and admiration. Gaara had surprised her. The Kazekage was urgent, and he had no time to dilly dally. Upturning the table and setting it down carefully, Gaara stood up, looking about him. One spectator pointed him out.

"There! There he is!" the people stared and pointed, but none of them came close to him. They were afraid of him, but yet they were thankful. He gazed down at Maya, who was still in a state of shock. It wasn't like you saw sand jutsu everyday.

"Maya…" Gaara got down upon his knees again, and scooped her up into his arms, standing up. "Hang on." He whispered to her, holding her close to his chest. She tied her arms around his neck and nodded to him vigorously. "O-Okay!"

Bending his knees, Gaara soared into the air, bursting through the roof and landing on the pavement outside softly. The sensation was incredible. Maya felt like she was a bird, lifting her wings and soaring into the air and taking flight. Her hair was all around her as he fell back down, not even flinching when they hit the pavement. Landing on the ground was like landing on a soft pillow.

He got down upon his knees again, setting her down and standing up, handing her the keys. "We should head back." He stated, walking towards the car in the distance. Maya stood up, dusting herself off and took a step forward, nearly tripping over her own two feet. A mountain of sand came to prevent her from hitting the pavement by accident.

"I can wait until you're feeling better." Gaara said, turning back to her. The girl gripped the sand, the soft rock aiding her from every angle. "Yeah…" she replied. "It's okay… I'm good!" with a smile, she righted herself back up, the sand falling to the ground and going back to Gaara. He watched as she made her way over to him, giggling.

"Was that… a sand burial technique?"


End file.
